Summary

  1. 'If you break it, you own it,' Badenoch says of Trump's Iran commentspublished at 18:45 BST 2 April

    Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch, in the control room during a visit to a chemical company, in TeesideImage source, Owen Humphreys/PA Wire

    Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has told Donald Trump "if you break it, you own it" over the Iran war, saying he shouldn't be "abandoning a mess that he's made".

    Badenoch has been asked about President Trump telling allies to go and get their own oil from the Strait of Hormuz.

    Speaking in Redcar, Teesside, the Conservative leader says the "special relationship is between the UK and the US, not between Donald Trump, and Keir Starmer".

    "But if I was speaking to him [Trump], I'd be saying, 'if you break it, you own it'," says Badenoch.

    "He should now not be abandoning a mess that he's made, if he thinks that it is a mess."

    The Tory leader says she wants to see the conflict "brought to an end", arguing that "it doesn't feel like there is a co-ordinated plan" to achieve this.

  2. Missile launched from Yemen towards Israel, says IDFpublished at 18:32 BST 2 April

    The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says a missile has been launched at its territory from Yemen and air defence systems are working to intercept the threat.

  3. BBC Verify

    Videos show Iran bridge collapse after explosionpublished at 18:14 BST 2 April

    Media caption,

    Footage shows smoke rising from Karaj bridge

    By Peter Mwai

    BBC Verify has examined two videos which appear to show separate air strikes on a bridge under construction in Karaj, a city just west of Iran’s capital Tehran.

    The verified video of the first attack shows the B1 bridge at the moment of a huge explosion on it. There is already a smoke plume rising nearby before the fireball, suggesting there may have been multiple strikes.

    We have also verified images showing the aftermath of this initial attack, which Iranian officials say killed two people.

    The pictures show a large gap in the bridge and construction cranes visible either side of it.

    BBC Verify has confirmed this is a new gap by checking satellite images captured in January, which show the span of the bridge intact.

    A large bridge with a large gap in the middle of itImage source, X/Mamlekate

    The bridge appears to have been attacked in two separate incidents as another clip, which has since been shared by US President Donald Trump, shows a different large blast.

    In this video, filmed from much further away, a significant section visibly collapses - and an even larger plume of smoke is already rising as in the first clip.

    A large fireball erupts on the span of a bridge, mountains are in the backgroundImage source, X
  4. Trump confirms Iran bridge strike that left two deadpublished at 17:56 BST 2 April

    A still from a video shared by President Donald Trump on Truth Social, showing an explosion on a bridge in IranImage source, Donald Trump / Truth Social
    Image caption,

    A still from a video shared by President Donald Trump on Truth Social, showing an explosion on a bridge in Iran

    US President Donald Trump has shared a video on social media of a strike on a bridge in Karaj, Iran.

    Video shows the bridge going up in a fiery plume of smoke after an airstrike earlier today. The Israeli Defense Forces had previously told the BBC that they were unaware of the strike.

    Trump is now seemingly claiming US responsibility for it.

    "The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again — Much more to follow! IT IS TIME FOR IRAN TO MAKE A DEAL BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE, AND THERE IS NOTHING LEFT OF WHAT STILL COULD BECOME A GREAT COUNTRY!" the president wrote on his platform Truth Social.

    Iranian media reported two people were killed in the strike.

    The US Defence Department has not responded to a request for comment.

  5. Iran arrests prominent human rights lawyer, daughter sayspublished at 17:44 BST 2 April

    Ghoncheh Habibiazad
    Senior reporter, BBC Persian

    A woman wearing a headscarf stands in her garden, looking directly at the cameraImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Nasrin Sotoudeh in a photograph from 2014

    Iranian human rights lawyer, and 2012 Sakharov Prize laureate Nasrin Sotoudeh was arrested at her home in Tehran last night, according to family.

    Her daughter Mehraveh Khandan, who is based outside Iran, said in a post on Instagram that Sotoudeh was arrested when she was at "home alone" last night. She has had no contact with her family since the arrest, and it remains unclear which branch of the authorities carried it out.

    Khandan said when relatives later went to the house, they found their "electronic devices" including her parents’ laptops and phones had been confiscated.

    Sotoudeh has been arrested a number of times before.

    In a recent interview with a foreign-based outlet called IranWire on 30 March, conducted via text messages due to government-imposed internet outage, Sotoudeh had commented on conditions in Tehran amid the ongoing war.

    She criticised the establishment for risking the country's electricity supply through "reckless obstinacy" over its nuclear programme and said decades of "chanting the slogan of death" by Iran had "put us in the risk of death".

  6. 'It's contradictory that you'd want to be bombed to get free', says Iranian living in New Yorkpublished at 17:22 BST 2 April

    Bahman Kalbasi
    BBC Persian

    I've been speaking to Iranians about their thoughts on Trump's recent warning that Iran would be bombed "back to the stone ages, where they belong".

    Mehran, an IT employee and New Yorker, originally from Tehran, says the US president's wording felt "disrespectful".

    "How sad is it that my family and friends in Iran are hopeful that they are getting bombed?" he says. "It's very contradictory that you'd want to get bombed to be free."

    "When the war started, like many I was hit with a ray of emotions. Happy that the monster who ruined millions of people's lives is finally gone, and worried that this is the beginning of god knows what."

    "My family and friends are living under bombardment as I lay in my comfortable bed. I feel useless and pathetic," Mehran says.

    Bam Azizi tells me he is pro-war, but strategy matters.

    "Saying 'send Iran to the Stone Age where it belongs' and hitting power plants risks turning 90m educated, pro-West Iranians—already oppressed—against the US. You have to separate the regime from the people," he adds.

  7. 'Every possible' measure will be used to reopen Strait of Hormuz, UK foreign secretary sayspublished at 17:03 BST 2 April

    Yvette Cooper sits next to a Union Flag as she is interviewed for a pool clipImage source, Pool

    UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper says countries across the world are determined to use "every possible diplomatic, economic and co-ordinated measure" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

    In an interview with broadcasters, Cooper says more than 40 countries have come together to support the reopening of the vital waterway. The strait has been all but closed by Iran putting significant pressure on global supply chains and energy prices.

    As we reported earlier, Cooper has been hosting discussions on reopening the Strait.

    Cooper repeatedly condemns Iran's "reckless" attacks on international shipping and adds that Iran is "seeking to hijack the global economy".

    She explains the attacks are affecting mortgage rates and petrol prices in the UK as well as jet fuel across the world, fertiliser to Africa, and also gas to Asia.

    Cooper says her job "is to take decisions in the UK national interest" and that the best thing for the cost of living in Britain would be for the conflict to end.

    The foreign secretary also says measures could include "working with the International Maritime Organisation to ensure that the first stranded ships can get moving again".

    As many as 2,000 ships remain trapped in the Persian Gulf, according to the United Nations.

  8. Israelis celebrate Passover in the shadow of warpublished at 16:43 BST 2 April

    Joel Gunter
    Reporting from Jerusalem

    A woman arranging a flower bouquet in an underground parking garage. Behind her are lots of tables with plates set out to have a meal. There are lots of people gathered in the background.Image source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    A woman arranges flowers during a Passover Selder in an underground bomb shelter on Wednesday night

    Israelis are celebrating the first day of the Jewish Passover holiday today. Traditional Seder meals were shared last night between families. This is typically a moment of joy and celebration for Jewish Israelis.

    But as people prepared for Seder last night, there was a stark reminder that the country is very much at war — a war that it began, a little over a month ago.

    In the early evening, sirens rang out in the capital Tel Aviv, in Jerusalem and across central Israel, followed by a succession of loud booms.

    Iran had fired about 10 ballistic missiles at Israel just as the holiday began, the largest salvo since the war started. The booms were the sound of Israel’s Iron Dome system detonating the missiles high in the sky, and a few that got through to land in open ground.

    More than a dozen Israelis were wounded in the strikes, including children, some critically. At the same time, Israel was launching heavy strikes against Iranian infrastructure.

    And the Israeli army is fighting on a second front — an occupation of a large swath of southern Lebanon that it says it plans to continue beyond any end to direct hostilities.

    There is no real concrete plan for an end to this war, making this a muted Passover, with quieter streets, struggling businesses, and celebrations taking place very much under the shadow of war.

  9. New strikes reported in Jerusalem, as Qatar and Kuwait intercept dronespublished at 16:25 BST 2 April

    There has been a wave of Iranian missile strikes against Israel, the Israel Defense Forces says.

    Local Israeli and Iranian media say the strikes were heard in Jerusalem.

    Separately, Qatar's Ministry of Defence says it intercepted all incoming drones after an attack launched by Iran on Thursday.

    Kuwait's defence ministry also says it intercepted two missiles and 13 drones in the last 24 hours.

  10. Oil prices rose after Trump began national address on Wednesdaypublished at 16:12 BST 2 April

    Natalie Sherman
    New York business reporter

    Just a day ago, oil prices had dropped sharply on hopes Donald Trump might be about to deliver a national address about preparing to wind down the war.

    But after his speech, they started climbing again. As of mid-afternoon in London, Brent crude, the global benchmark, was trading around $108 a barrel, up more than 6%.

    The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, rose even more sharply, climbing more than 10% to more than $110 a barrel - its highest point since the war began.

    Trump in his speech on Wednesday said the US was still on track to reach its objectives “shortly”. But he offered few specifics about an exit plan – and no assurances about the Strait of Hormuz, where ship traffic has been blocked, threatening oil and gas supplies.

    “When this conflict is over, the Strait will open up naturally,” he said.

  11. Two killed in Karaj, Iranian official sayspublished at 16:02 BST 2 April

    Ghoncheh Habibiazad
    Senior reporter, BBC Persian

    Two people have been killed following a strike on a bridge in Karaj, a city near Tehran - located in Alborz province, according to Deputy for Security at the Alborz Governor's Office.

    The deputy said that a number of people were injured following the strike on B1 bridge in the city. The deputy was quoted by Iranian media outlets.

    Since then, there have been reports of a second strike on the bridge.

    I have heard that there were electricity fluctuations and outages in parts of the city following the first strike.

    I've asked the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) about both strikes on the bridge in Karaj. They say, "we're not aware of such (an) IDF strike".

  12. New strikes reported in Tehran and Karajpublished at 15:56 BST 2 April

    Ghoncheh Habibiazad
    Senior reporter, BBC Persian

    I'm hearing from Tehran and Karaj that there have been strikes just now.

    It's the second time a source has heard heavy strikes in Karaj today.

    Iranian outlets are saying there have been explosions in east Tehran, and I've heard from a source in the northeast that he could hear them.

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  13. UK to hold military planners meeting next week - defence ministrypublished at 15:33 BST 2 April

    The UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed that military planners will meet next week at the UK's Permanent Joint Headquarters to discuss the Strait of Hormuz.

    It comes after Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper revealed that today's summit between foreign ministers across the globe will be followed up with a meeting between military planners.

    Next week's meeting will cover the "viable options to make the Strait of Hormuz accessible and safe for navigation", says the MoD in an update shared on X.

    It adds that, overnight, Britain's RAF Regiment gunners "successfully downed multiple Iranian drones" operating in a "high-threat area" overnight.

  14. UN Secretary General calls on US and Israel to stop the warpublished at 15:19 BST 2 April

    UN Secretary General António Guterres speaking with two microphones in front of him. He wears a black jacket and red patterned tieImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    UN Secretary General António Guterres

    UN Secretary General António Guterres just spoke to reporters in New York, where he called for an immediate end to the war and cessation of hostilities on all sides.

    "We are on the edge of a wider war that would engulf the whole Middle East with dramatic impacts around the globe," he says.

    He cited rising costs, saying people are already struggling from rising energy and food prices.

    "When the Strait of Hormuz is strangled, the world’s poorest and most vulnerable cannot breathe," he says.

    He calls for disputes to be settled "peacefully" and says that civilian infrastructure "including nuclear installations" should be "respected and protected".

    He goes on to say: "My message is clear, to the United States and Israel, it is high time to stop the war that is inflicting immense human suffering and already triggering devastating economic consequences.

    "To Iran, to stop attacking their neighbours."

  15. Seven million Iranians have stepped up to fight in the war - Iran's parliamentary speakerpublished at 15:00 BST 2 April

    Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran's parliament, says seven million Iranians have volunteered for military service since the start of the war with Israel and the US.

    He says "a powerful national campaign" has led to the millions of Iranians declaring that they are "ready to pick up arms and stand in defense of our nation".

    "We've done it before, and we're ready to do it again. You come for our home...you're gonna meet the whole family," he said, adding: "Bring it on."

  16. BBC Verify

    Video shows fire at Iranian airport following reported strikespublished at 14:36 BST 2 April

    By Peter Mwai and Shayan Sardarizadeh

    BBC Verify has examined a video of a huge plume of smoke rising near the main airport in Mashhad, a city in north-eastern Iran.

    The verified clip was first shared this morning and was filmed from a vehicle driving near Mashhad International Airport.

    We were able to confirm it was moving along a major highway near Mashhad by identifying landmarks and matching them to street view imagery.

    Iranian media reports say fuel storage tanks and a warehouse may have been targeted. The airport also hosts one of the air bases of Iran’s air force, but it is not possible to identify what was hit from the video.

    A screengrab from a video being filmed as a car drives by a large plume of black smoke rising into the airImage source, X/Mamlekate
  17. Israel strikes Lebanon again, while rocket fire from Lebanon causes damage in Israelpublished at 14:13 BST 2 April

    First responders dig through the debris of a bombed out home collapsed on itself after a missile strikeImage source, AFP via Getty Images
    Image caption,

    First responders have been looking for survivors at the site of an overnight missile strike in the village of Zibdine

    We've just brought you some footage of explosions near a major Iranian missile base, and we're now seeing images of the aftermath of strikes in other parts of the Middle East.

    In Lebanon, Israel is still carrying out an extensive bombing campaign targeting Hezbollah strongholds in the south of the country.

    Thousands of people have left their homes and set up tents on the streets and beaches to escape the attacks.

    Rockets have also been fired by militants from Lebanon into Israel.

    Two men in dark clothing stand inside a room of a residential building heavily damaged. A large hole in the ceiling, debris scattered across the floorImage source, AFP via Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Members of the Druze community assess the damage in a building that was hit overnight by a rocket fired from Lebanon, in the city of Shefa-Amr near Haifa in northern Israel

    Correction 17:20 BST Thursday: The caption in the above picture has been changed - the picture was taken in Israel, and shows damage from a rocket fired from Lebanon. It was not taken in Lebanon, showing damage caused by Israeli rocket fire, as the original caption mistakenly said. The headline on the post has also changed, and a sentence has been added to the post, to reflect that rocket fire from Lebanon also hit Israel.

    A woman with a black head covering veil and clothing sits on a plastic chair next to her eldest daughter as she looks at something in her hands with her youngest daughter. A boy stands next to the chair talking, behind the group are three tents pitched on a streetImage source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    Thousands across Lebanon have been forced to flee their homes since the start of the Israeli strikes last month

  18. BBC Verify

    Major explosions at Isfahan missile base after strikespublished at 13:55 BST 2 April

    By Shayan Sardarizadeh and Sherie Ryder

    Videos showing huge explosions near a major Iranian missile base on the outskirts of Isfahan have been verified.

    BBC Verify has examined three clips first shared on social media yesterday, including one showing a large plume of smoke and fire debris in the air near the Isfahan South missile base. The man recording expresses his shock at the scale of the blast.

    The base is located on the edge of a mountain range in the south of Isfahan in central Iran.

    Another clip, filmed to the north of the base, shows smoke rising over the mountains from fires and several subsequent large secondary explosions. This suggests other explosive material has detonated following a US or Israeli strike.

    A third video from the nearby town of Baharestan shows the base burning for several minutes.

    Several secondary explosions are visible in this clip as well, which shows debris repeatedly thrown into the air towards the town or landing in the mountains.

  19. Iran war reaches day 34 - what's happened today so far?published at 13:52 BST 2 April

    Nabiha Ahmed
    Live reporter

    If you're just joining us, or are in need of a refresher, here's a glance at the latest developments in the US-Israeli war with Iran:

    • Renewed threats to escalate the war: Iran has warned of "crushing, broader and destructive" attacks to come, hours after President Trump warned that the US would hit Iran "extremely hard" in the next few weeks
    • Fresh strikes in Iran: Sources tell BBC Persian's Ghoncheh Habibiazad that Karaj, a city west of Tehran, has been "hit hard". Iranian media reports that a key bridge in the city has been targeted
    • Update on the Strait of Hormuz: Iran says it is permitting ships "not related" to the US or Israel to pass through the strait - but why is this passage so important?
    • Foreign ministers meet: Meanwhile, during a virtual summit between over 40 of her global counterparts to discuss the strait, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has reiterated the "urgent need" for it to reopen
    • Gulf countries targeted: Both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have reported missiles and drones heading into their airspace today
  20. UAE says 19 missiles and 26 drones launched from Iran todaypublished at 13:30 BST 2 April

    We've had an update from the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence, which says that they have "engaged with" 19 missiles and 26 drones launched from Iran today.

    The ministry says in its update on X that since the war began, the UAE's air defences have tackled around 457 missiles and 2,038 drones.